Lane Evans

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez).

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps). (Mrs. CAPPS asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I urge my colleagues to oppose the resolution before us today. This vote really is about how we best can achieve change in Vietnam. I believe the record stands for itself. We have achieved progress by engagement, by encouraging Vietnamese cooperation on important issues, such as human rights and political economic reform. I can speak personally about this progress. I have been to Vietnam and seen the work of the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, our military presence in Vietnam tasked with looking into the issue of missing servicemen and women. I have visited these young people and they are among the best and well-motivated group of soldiers I have ever met. Every day, from the searches of the jungle battle sites to the excavation of crash sites on precarious mountain summits, they put themselves in harm's way to recover our missing. In talking with them, it was clear to me that they were performing a mission that they truly believed in. On April 7 of this year, the danger became all too real. On that day, seven American members of the Joint Task Force, along with nine Vietnamese, lost their lives in a helicopter crash as they were on their way to a recovery mission. The tragedy was a huge blow to the recovery efforts, as we lost both Americans and Vietnamese who had been deeply involved in finding our missing. We should remember our deceased as American heroes who gave their lives in pursuit of a mission they believed was a high honor and sacred duty. If we pass this resolution of disapproval, we will be hindering that mission. The only way we can carry out this mission is to effectively have a presence in Vietnam, and to maintain the presence means reciprocating on the promises that we have made to reward the Vietnamese cooperation. Passing this resolution would definitely send the wrong signal to Vietnam, not to mention the brave American men and women who are still searching in the rice paddies and mountains of Vietnam. Mr. Speaker, this is the 4th year that this House will vote on a resolution of disapproval. Since we first voted on this, the House has, each time, with growing and overwhelming support, voted down the resolution. Let us stay the course. Let us support our Joint Task Force-Full Accounting. Let us support our nation's bipartisan policy which has only furthered our goals toward a more open and cooperative Vietnam. Please vote against the resolution.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to join with the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) in cosponsoring the amendment he is offering. The Obey-Evans amendment will provide substantial increased funding for veterans' medical care and other important programs. I urge my colleagues to support the Obey-Evans amendment to address the significant shortfalls in funding for veterans' health care in the committee's bill. I believe a $1.2 billion increase in veterans' medical care funding is fully justified. I have prepared an amendment to provide this increase. There are many challenges that the VA will face in the near future. The VA must continue to honor its commitment to our most vulnerable veterans with the most serious disabilities. It must meet its growing infrastructure needs. Impending clinical staff shortages, including nurses, the VA's largest employee group, and the rising cost of gasoline plaguing areas around the country are among those challenges. It is clear, however, that this House is not prepared to approve this $1.2 billion increase today. An increase that will be provided by the Obey-Evans amendment is needed. Long before President George Bush promised Americans a tax cut, we made a commitment to honor those who served and defended this Nation in its most dire hours. It is now our duty to make sure that our obligations are paid back to them. Our amendment will do this.

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Chairman, I offer an Amendment No. 11.

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Chairman, my amendment would prohibit the Department of Veterans' Affairs from expending appropriated funds for the purpose of implementing a proposal contained in President Bush's budget. The budget proposal would require all military retirees, including the one-quarter million veterans currently enrolled for care in the VA, to choose between either the VA or the DOD as their exclusive health care provider. This proposal has incurred the justifiable anger of our military retirees, the military itself, and the veterans service organizations. I believe that retirees have earned their right to access health care benefits in both systems and should be given that right and choice. Mr. Chairman, while it is my understanding that the legislation will be needed to enact my proposal, I wish to prohibit any efforts by the Department of Veterans' Affairs to begin implementation of it. Congress should have more time to fully assess the effects this legislation will have and its impact on the lives of former servicemen and women. Military retirees have devoted their lives to serving our country. We will breach our commitment if we allow the VA and the Department of Defense to simply implement their proposal that eliminates veterans' choice of providers. The truth is that these two systems provide very different packages of services and military retirees have earned the right to both. I hope every Member of Congress will agree that this proposal is worthy of approval, and I urge its approval. I want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh) and my chairman on the authorizing committee, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), for getting this done. I appreciate it.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, this afternoon I was joined by Ms. Soon Dok Kim, an unconquered survivor of one of the worst crimes committed against women--the mass rape of 200,000 women and girls orchestrated by the Imperial Japanese Army. To this date the Government of Japan still has not issued a clear apology, offered state reparations, or attempted to educate it's population on these atrocities. Therefore, I am introducing a resolution in Congress today that calls upon the Government of Japan to formally issue a clear and unambiguous apology for the sexual enslavement of young women during the colonial occupation of Asia and Pacific Islands during World War II. Ms. Soon Dok Kim told a large audience this afternoon about how she was kidnaped from her village at 17 years old and forced to be a comfort woman. She is a very courageous person to take such a public role and share the story of her suffering in order to seek justice. It has been almost 56 years since Japan surrendered to the allied powers. Very few comfort women are still alive and time is running out for Japan to properly account for its actions. We must act soon and remember that there is no statute of limitations on crimes against humanity. When human rights are violated, the international community must act because we have a moral responsibility to do so. So, let us do what is just and what is right for the comfort women and other victims. Let us speak out for them. Let us stand up for them. Let us lend them our strength. We must act, and we must speak out because in the end, people will remember not the words of their enemies, but the silence of their friends. Let us not remain silent.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, there should really be no debate about stem cell research, given the immense promise that it holds for a number of diseases. This is an issue that is of paramount importance to millions of Americans who stand to benefit from this groundbreaking research. I know, because I am one of them. I suffer from Parkinson's disease. This debate is being mired down in the politics of abortion, but it has nothing to do with abortion. This is an issue of medicine. Stem cells are never derived from an embryo that a woman intends to be implanted into her womb, nor are embryos ever created for their use in stem cell research. Researchers only use embryos which were scheduled to be discarded. Clearly, these embryos can be put to better use. The scientific promise of embryonic stem cells offer hope that simply did not exist a few years ago. We cannot afford to literally throw away such potential. Every day that we continue research brings with it astonishing possibilities for enhanced treatments and cures for now-irreversible diseases and injuries. Let us come together as a body in support of stem cell research.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. EVANS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks, and include extraneous material.)

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to vote for this measure. This legislation provides an increase which is moderate but it is important in veterans' educational benefits. I want to salute the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the chairman. He has worked together with me in the past. I look forward to a good relationship in the future. He got that budgetary increase. We are quite proud of his hard work in that regard. We have some differences on this issue today, but they are honest differences. I regret that no member of the Subcommittee on Benefits or the full Committee on Veterans' Affairs has been given the opportunity to vote on this measure or alternative legislation. Ironically, while this measure will improve educational benefits for men and women in uniform who serve to protect and defend our freedoms and liberties, members have been stripped of their right to vote in committee. Not only have Members been disenfranchised, so too have the men and women who elected them to represent them in office here in the Congress. After days of hearings of testimony from more than two dozen witnesses, there was no debate and there was no vote on this measure or any other proposal. This, I believe, is a sad commentary. It will be said that this measure provides a major increase in the educational benefits for veterans; but while that is true, we could do much more. It has been said that this legislation is a partial step. That is an acknowledgment that the benefits provided by the legislation are insufficient. Years from now, a future Congress may enact legislation providing veterans a truly meaningful educational benefit. There is no time at this point to wait, however. That meaningful veterans education benefit could be provided now. I am forced to conclude the leadership of this Congress is too timid and not willing to undertake that important step. It may be said that it costs too much to provide our servicemen and women an educational benefit worthy of their service. I understand the budgetary surplus of the next 10 years is expected to be $500 billion. It is not a question about the budget. It is a question about our priorities. The importance of a meaningful veterans educational benefit is well understood. The educational opportunities veterans had during World War II fundamentally changed our Nation for the better, as the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) has pointed out. Military service today is no less worthy. I regret that this measure provides inadequate benefits. I regret committee members are not given the opportunity to do their job. I regret that the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), the ranking Democrat member of the Subcommittee on Benefits, will be unable to participate in this debate because of the circumstances by which this measure was brought to the floor. Nonetheless, I urge my colleagues to support this measure. I salute the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and his staff for their hard work; but our veterans, I believe, deserve the help that they get from the Federal Government, and we must do more to make this a meaningful piece of legislation.

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton), the ranking member of the Committee on Armed Services.

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Snyder).

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez).

Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing The Reservist VA Home Loan Fairness Act of 2001. It is always appropriate for America to recognize the indispensable contribution the members of the Reserve Components make to this nation's total military force. By supporting The Reservist VA Home Loan Fairness Act of 2001, Congress will do more than simply state that ``Reservists are full-partners in the Total Force''--Congress will recognize the contributions of Reservists in a tangible way by granting them access to VA home loans on the same footing and at the same funding fee schedule as active duty veterans. This is a basic fairness issue. Since the Gulf War, America has called upon the Guard and Reserves at an ever-increasing rate. In the last five years, the utilization tempo of Reserve Component members has increased 13-fold from the tempo they maintained during the last five years of the 1980s. When called to duty, members of the Guard and Reserves leave home, family and job to enter harm's way. They are indistinguishable from their active duty counterparts in Bosnia, Korea, or in South West Asia. Yet, should these veterans apply for a VA Home Loan Guarantee, they are told that they must pay an additional three-quarters of one percent for the VA's Reservist-rate Funding Fee. They are the only group required to bear this added financial burden for VA Home Loans. Perhaps this is one reason that less than four percent of all home loans in FY 2000 were provided to Reservists. This disparity must end. The Guard and Reserves are full partners in America's Total Force. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to support the Reservist VA Home Loan Fairness Act of 2001. The cost in dollars is small, but the message you will send is large and powerful.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, on Monday we will commemorate Memorial Day. We will pause to humbly and gratefully remember the service and sacrifice of the men and women who have served in uniform and have defended and preserved our shared ideals. Shamefully, on Memorial Day 2001, hundreds of thousands of disabled veterans and their families continue to wait for action on claims for veterans benefits now pending before the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). To his credit, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Anthony Principi, has been candid with veterans and their advocates about the crisis that exists today in veterans' claims adjudication. Repeatedly, Secretary Principi has stated that addressing the backlog of 513,309 claims currently pending before regional offices of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is his number one priority. In acknowledging the claims adjudication crisis, Secretary Principi recently stated in an interview with the Veterans of Foreign Wars, ``In the short-term, we will train more specialists. The staff will be increased to assist in clearing the backlog.'' Secretary Principi is to be commended for recognizing the size and scope of the problem. He has taken action to authorize the hiring of additional staff needed to begin addressing the claims crisis. He has made known the need for additional resources to resolve this crisis successfully. However, President Bush and his Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have failed to promptly take actions needed to ameliorate the burgeoning veterans claims adjudication crisis. For its part, OMB established a significant roadblock by refusing to submit to Congress a supplemental funding request for less than $30 million needed to pay for the critically needed additional VA staff Secretary Principi is hiring. Early this year, VA requested a supplemental appropriation of $29.1 million for this fiscal year to pay for the additional staff needed to address the backlog of compensation, pension and education claims. Despite the evident need for this Those who have taken the time to talk with and listen to veterans understand that the time veterans are forced to wait for medical care is long and excessive, especially for certain specialized care form many VA medical facilities. The Committee on Veterans' Affairs submitted a bipartisan request to the Budget Committee pointing to a more than $1 billion shortfall in the Administration's 2002 budget. Since the Bush Administration took office, the backlog of veterans' claims has increased by more than 100,000. The number of claims awaiting a decision for more than six months also continues to grow-- from 95,680 on January 19, 2001, to 143,777 on May 16, 2001. A number of factors have caused the increased backlog. The processing of VA claims is a complex and labor intensive job. Recent legislation requires VA to obtain records in the custody of the federal government, including military records and medical evidence, before deciding a claim for service-connected compensation. This assistance to veterans supported by President Bush is intended to assure that veterans' claims would be treated with fundamental fairness and result in an accurate and fair decision. I am under no illusion that by bringing in additional staff, the backlog will disappear overnight. Similarly, I understand the backlog of claims will not be reduced while quality decision-making is maintained and improved unless and until additional resources are made available--resources needed to hire additional personnel and train them appropriately. Critically needed additional funding must be requested by the Administration. Alternatively, the backlog will continue to increase and the time taken to resolve it will likewise continue to increase. Surely this will not honor our veterans. The question today is how soon will VA exhaust funds to pay for the costs of needed additional staff? What other programs are being cut to cover the costs of the additional employees desperately needed to adjudicate claims? How many Mr. Reyes and I have today introduced H.R. 1980. This bill would authorize an emergency supplemental appropriation to provide the funding needed to address the crisis in VA claims adjudication that exists today. I call on President Bush to support this legislation or submit a similar request to the Congress now. This Memorial Day, our Nation's veterans will be the subject of many finely crafted speeches delivered to honor them. Words, however, are not enough. Our deeds are a better measure of how well we truly honor our veterans. The need for additional resources is real. Claims adjudication is, and will remain for some time, a labor- intensive work. Let our deeds match our words of commemoration and remembrance. Let us provide the critically needed funding to pay for the resources needed to address the backlog and let us do this now. During the campaign for President, then candidate Bush said, ``health care for veterans is a complicated, bureaucratic process involving too many delays and uncertainties in coverage. Disability compensation claims can be an even longer ordeal, taking an average of 165 days to complete. So chaotic is the process there is now a backlog of nearly one-half million claims. This is no way to treat any citizen, much less a veteran of our Armed Forces. The veterans health-care system and the claims process will be modernized, so that claims are handled in a fair and friendly way.'' Mr. President, I agree and now is the time for you to act. Candidate Bush also said, ``I have great faith in those who serve our nation--in the temper of their will and the quality of their spirit. Our men and women in uniform love their country more than their comfort. They have never failed us, and we must not fail them.'' Mr. President, we must not fail those who have served and sacrificed. Take action now to request the additional funding so desperately needed for our Nation to keep faith with our veterans. It is time for your words and deeds to be one.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I do not plan to object, but reserve my right to object. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1801, the Veterans' Survival Benefits Improvements Act of 2001, and I encourage all Members of the House to support this measure. The measure now before the House is derived from legislation approved by this body earlier this year. This legislation contains several important provisions contained in the House-passed bill, an important healthcare provision proposed by the other body, and several technical amendments. Mr. Speaker, I would prefer that all the provisions contained in H.R. 801 as approved by the House earlier this year were included in the measure before us now, but that is not the case. Mr. Speaker, I am committed, as I know the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) is, to pursuing the enactment of all the provisions contained in the bill as originally approved by the House. The legislation includes a number of important provisions which deserve the support of this House. These include increasing from $200,000 to $250,000, effective October 1, 2000, the maximum Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance Benefit for survivors of servicemen who died in the performance of duty and who were previously insured for the maximum benefits. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) for his determined leadership on this important issue requiring the VA to ensure that eligible dependents are made aware of VA services through media and veterans' publications. This provision is derived from the legislation authored by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Doyle), a committed advocate for veterans and their dependents and survivors; and I want to salute the gentleman for his successful leadership for VA outreach to the dependents. It also includes coverage under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance and provides for benefits under CHAMPVA for veterans' survivors and those eligible for hospital insurance benefits under Medicare. Mr. Speaker, I thank everyone who has contributed to this measure. This is a good piece of legislation. Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my Members to support it. Mr. Speaker, under my reservation of objection, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes).

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.

Mr. EVANS

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, last week this body overwhelmingly approved H.R. 1696 by a vote of 400-15. The Members of this body clearly want the construction of a World War II memorial in the District of Columbia to be expedited. I am pleased that Members of the other body have taken the action to expedite the memorial construction. H.R. 1696, as approved by the Senate, will expedite construction of the World War II memorial at the dedicated Rainbow Pool site on the Mall. Mr. Speaker, let us approve this measure now and send it back to the President, and move forward with the construction of the World War II memorial in the District of Columbia. The National World War II Memorial will honor all Americans who served in the Armed Forces during World War II, as well as the millions of other Americans who contributed in so many different ways. Mr. Speaker, the time to construct this memorial is now. More than 50 years after the end of World War II, there still is no fitting memorial for the service and sacrifices of millions of Americans who preserved democracy and defeated totalitarianism in World War II. Mr. Speaker, the time to construct this memorial is now. I again commend my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump), for his effective leadership on this issue. I urge every Member of the House to support this resolution. The gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump) is one of the heroes of World War II. To the gentleman and the others of his generation, we thank them for their service and sacrifice. It is time to build a memorial to honor their actions. We appreciate them very much. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 8 minutes to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton).

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton), the ranking member of the Committee on Armed Services.

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran).

Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).